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Material Connections

STONE JOURNAL ISSUE 1

Beauty might lie in the eye of the beholder, but most can agree that behind every well-appointed project is an equally beautiful backdrop. When a couple tasked Luca Pignata to work on a property along the California coastline, the architect quickly realized that he was blessed with the ultimate blank canvas.

“The property’s placement on a bluff allowed a perfect view of the coastline from all windows,” says Pignata, a Backen Gillam alum who runs his eponymous architecture firm in Northern California. “This is a dream come true: A client’s sophisticated vision that came with a property that is stunning and one of a kind, and the opportunity to create something really special for the place.”

Before Pignata could begin to create a spectacular space, he wanted to understand the property’s natural environment on a cellular level. “As an architect, you need to factor in what’s given to us from the site,” he says. “The geographical location, from the views, the light, the sun patterns, the wind patterns, the sounds.”

After learning more about the property, Pignata realized that the Pacific Ocean backdrop was more than a great view: It had to be part of the architecture. Though the home’s modern profile creates a contemporary contrast against the rugged coastline, Pignata argues it was an “exercise in geometry.” For example, the lower roof profile helps maximize the residence’s square footage without breaching the area’s strict elevation limitations.

“The door and the scale of the spaces were designed to capture the horizon line, which is so dramatic throughout the year and changes every day,” he says. “We liked the idea that it also allowed us to create a house that would nest better in the bluff—becoming less noticeable in a way.”

To strike a balance between style and subtlety, it was important to select materials that felt at home along the California coastline. “They wanted a stone that was light in color with not a lot of variation,” says Robin Steudler, an independent natural stone consultant who helped with this project. “Since the property is right there on the water, we had to be very careful as far as sourcing something that would not discolor with the salt air. The materials needed to stand up to all the elements over time.”

Sun-drenched windows and a sprinkling of stone throughout the home pay homage to the rugged coastline outside.

Pignata says the stone and teak wood used on the facade were selected with longevity in mind. “They feel timeless,” he says. “It will look beautiful on day one and still look beautiful in 20 years.”

“This is a dream come true: A client’s sophisticated vision that came with a property that is stunning and one of a kind.”

When it came to selecting a gorgeous, high-quality stone for this project, Steudler says Buechel Stone was the obvious choice. “When you’ve been in the industry for as long as I have, there are a lot of quarries that you stay away from because you know that you’re asking for problems,” she explains. “Not once did I hesitate with the architect and the contractor that this was the way to go because I knew that Buechel Stone could handle anything that was put in front of them.”

The team ultimately selected Buechel Stone’s Silverdale Tailored Blend, an offering that has a light, consistent color. “We were searching for something that had a nice, elegant contrast with the darkness of the teak, but still had some cohesion with the bluff’s sand,” Pignata explains.

Additionally, this project required custom heights for the stone in order for it to pattern out correctly without a mortar joint, ensuring a seamless drystacked installation that aligned with the overall design vision.

Though the residence’s facade deftly blends in with its surroundings, the open, airy interior features a mix of expansion and compression to highlight the views. “There is a moment of compression when you first enter the space,” he says. “When you come through that point, the entire space opens up to a completely different scale and you are suddenly having a dialogue with the water.”

While the Pacific Ocean might be a “wow” factor of the home’s interiors, the team brought a little bit of the outside in with Buechel Stone’s Mill Creek Paving, reimagined in its Select Gray colorway. “Since they didn’t want it to look brand new, the quarry distressed the edges on it, which made it look somewhat like a French limestone,” Steudler says. “The color really works well with the facade but adds a different color range to blend in with the landscapes.”

This waterfront property cleverly shows the beauty of the great outdoors—and indoors—but Pignata credits its success to the project’s powerful partnerships. “Great architecture can only happen if the combination of many factors occur. It starts with a visionary and creative mind as a client—and this was one of those projects. When you include the vendors, construction team, and subcontractors we worked with, it was magical.”

◗ Masonry by Cornerstone Masonry of Salinas, CA. The stones used in the projects are Mill Creek Paving and Silverdale Tailored Blend Custom Heights.

Nestled along the California coastline, the striking ocean views naturally became a key element in architect Luca Pignata’s design.

The living room feels like a serene retreat where people can enjoy natural light flooding the space.

They work so well together where there is definitely that cohesion in terms of tone, but it doesn’t feel super matchy,” Robin Steudler says of the Buechel Stone varietals used in this home.

Step inside the property to find a welcoming, open-concept floor plan. “It was designed for the family to really be together, spend time together, and play together,” Pignata shares.

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